The Colorado Avalanche broke their winless streak to start the year, notching a 4-3 OT win over the Anaheim Ducks on Friday night at Ball Arena.
Overall, the Avalanche dominated the game, putting nearly 50 shots on goal. Still, the Avs needed OT to settle the final score.
So, let’s take a look at the following game notes as the Colorado Avalanche got back on the plus side against the Anaheim Ducks.
Game notes on the Colorado Avalanche’s first win of the season
Ross Colton is the real deal
Ross Colton scored two goals on Friday night. But these goals weren’t just tip-ins or loose pucks. They were absolute rockets that Ducks’ goaltender Lukas Dostal had no chance to stop.
Colton was all over the ice, taking advantage of the speed and chances that come with playing on the same line as Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon. Moving forward, it will be interesting to see what the Avs do when Jonathan Drouin comes back.
Personally, I’d like to see an extended engagement for Colton on the top line even when Drouin comes back. At this point, the Avs need to ride the hot hand as the club looks to gain momentum in any way it can.
The Avs struggled to beat the Ducks
The Avs played with a sense of urgency from the opening faceoff. Despite the intensity, the Avs were down 2-0 after 20 minutes. Alexandar Georgiev looked shaky once again, as the Avs seemed headed toward their fifth loss of the year.
Then, it seemed like a switch was flipped during that first intermission. The Avs took control of the game and chipped away at the lead until Colton gave the Avs their first lead of the night in the third period.
Unfortunately, the Avs could not close out the game, giving up the tying goal with 12 seconds to do. Then, three high-quality scoring chances failed to go in during OT. Perhaps the most glaring was Sam Girard’s shot that rang off the crossbar.
In the end, Nathan MacKinnon willed the game-winner as he took on all three Ducks’ players on the ice himself and scored a beauty to the end. While Friday night’s effort was commendable, the truth is that the Avs had to labor to beat the Ducks.
Given the amount of talent on the Colorado Avalanche, the club shouldn’t have struggled as much to win. But under the current circumstances, a win by any means is a welcome prospect.
Alexandar Georgiev had a bounce-back game
It was great to see Alexandar Georgiev have his best game of the year. Despite the shaky start, giving two goals on eight shots in the first period, he settled down in the second and third periods, especially after the Avs took over the game.
When all was said and done, Georgiev made 16 saves. But it was the mad scramble late in the third that could be a momentum shifter for Georgiev, as his confidence could have gotten a boost despite giving up the tying goal.
Ultimately, Friday night’s win could have been the beginning of a turnaround for Colorado. Time will tell where the Avs go from here.